GeForce 8800 GT 512MB vs GeForce GT 440 3GB

Intro

Compare those specifications to the GeForce GT 440 3GB, which features a clock frequency of 594 MHz and a GDDR3 memory frequency of 900 MHz. It also uses a 192-bit memory bus, and makes use of a 40 nm design. It is comprised of 144 SPUs, 24 TAUs, and 24 ROPs.

Display Graphs

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Power Usage and Theoretical Benchmarks

Power Consumption (Max TDP)

GeForce GT 440 3GB		56 Watts
GeForce 8800 GT 512MB		105 Watts
	Difference: 49 Watts (88%)

Memory Bandwidth

Theoretically speaking, the GeForce 8800 GT 512MB should be much faster than the GeForce GT 440 3GB in general. (explain)

GeForce 8800 GT 512MB		57600 MB/sec
GeForce GT 440 3GB		43200 MB/sec
	Difference: 14400 (33%)

Texel Rate

The GeForce 8800 GT 512MB will be much (more or less 136%) faster with regards to texture filtering than the GeForce GT 440 3GB. (explain)

GeForce 8800 GT 512MB		33600 Mtexels/sec
GeForce GT 440 3GB		14256 Mtexels/sec
	Difference: 19344 (136%)

Pixel Rate

If using a high screen resolution is important to you, then the GeForce GT 440 3GB is the winner, by far. (explain)

GeForce GT 440 3GB		14256 Mpixels/sec
GeForce 8800 GT 512MB		9600 Mpixels/sec
	Difference: 4656 (49%)

Please note that the above 'benchmarks' are all just theoretical - the results were calculated based on the card's specifications, and real-world performance may (and probably will) vary at least a bit.

Price Comparison

Specifications

Memory Bandwidth: Bandwidth is the maximum amount of data (in units of MB per second) that can be transported past the external memory interface within a second. It's calculated by multiplying the card's interface width by its memory speed. If the card has DDR type RAM, the result should be multiplied by 2 once again. If it uses DDR5, multiply by ANOTHER 2x. The better the bandwidth is, the better the card will be in general. It especially helps with anti-aliasing, High Dynamic Range and higher screen resolutions.

Texel Rate: Texel rate is the maximum amount of texture map elements (texels) that are processed in one second. This is worked out by multiplying the total texture units of the card by the core clock speed of the chip. The higher the texel rate, the better the card will be at handling texture filtering (anisotropic filtering - AF). It is measured in millions of texels in one second.

Pixel Rate: Pixel rate is the maximum number of pixels the video card can possibly write to the local memory in a second - measured in millions of pixels per second. The number is worked out by multiplying the number of ROPs by the clock speed of the card. ROPs (Raster Operations Pipelines - aka Render Output Units) are responsible for outputting the pixels (image) to the screen. The actual pixel output rate also depends on lots of other factors, especially the memory bandwidth - the lower the bandwidth is, the lower the potential to get to the maximum fill rate.